Microscope devices have been used in surgical operations. A microscope device is configured such that an arm unit supports an electronic imaging microscope unit (a video microscope unit). An operator performs a surgical operation viewing an enlarged operating site using a video photographed by the microscope unit.
With respect to such microscope devices, there have been demands for control of positions and attitudes of microscope units thereof with high precision to obtain desired videos. In particular, in a case in which photographing at a high magnification factor is being performed, a slight deviation of a position and an attitude of a microscope unit leads to a significant deviation of a video, and thus a position and an attitude of the microscope unit are required to be controlled with high precision. A user normally moves a position and an attitude of such a microscope unit using his or her hand; however, when highly precise positioning is performed with his or her hand, the user has to do delicate work, which increases a burden of the user and causes the positioning work prolonged, and even leads to a lengthened operation time.
Here, Patent Literature 1 discloses a technology relating to a scanning electron microscope, rather than such a microscope device for operation described above, for reducing a burden of manipulation of a user to obtain a desired image. Specifically, a stage on which a sample is placed is automatically moved so that a desired image designated by a user is obtained in the technology disclosed in Patent Literature 1. According to this technology, a desired image can be automatically obtained only by performing a user's simple manipulation of designating the desired image, and thus a burden of the user can be reduced.